Florida Home Mortgage Applications Increase

Applications for Florida home mortgage financing rose for the third week in a row as a recent decline in interest rates encouraged more homeowners to refinance.

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, the index compares with its year-ago level of 772.2 and continues to be held back by a slump in home loan applications made with the intent to purchase a home, data shows.

The seasonally-adjusted index of total Florida mortgage applications, including refinancings, rose 2 percent in the week ending September 15 to 595.8, its highest level since April.

The component index of home purchases declined 3 percent to 397.9, while the gauge of home mortgage refinance activity jumped 9.5 percent to 1,748.7.

Gains in the overall index coincide with the recent drop in the rate on standard 30-year mortgage rates that finance about three-quarters of all U.S. homes. The average 30-year fixed Florida home loan rate was at 6.36 percent last week, up from 6.32 percent in the previous week, but still down 0.5 from June.

Rates have been on the retreat since the Federal Reserve left its target interest rate unchanged at 5.25 percent in August and amid expectations that it will do the same at its meeting on Wednesday.

Reports on Tuesday showing muted inflation at the wholesale level and a larger-than-expected drop in new home sales cemented those views, pushing U.S. Treasury debt yields that guide mortgage rates lower and boosting the overall value of applications.